


Phone Call

by amethystviolist



Series: "Phone Call" Verse [1]
Category: Merlin (TV)
Genre: Angst, Blood and Injury, M/M, WARNING: mild mentions of blood/injury, i mean i had an alternate happy ending but i scrapped it because who doesn't want to sob grossly, i wouldn't consider it "Graphic" but just be aware, no happy ending
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-06-09
Updated: 2017-06-09
Packaged: 2018-11-12 05:49:39
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,628
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11155536
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/amethystviolist/pseuds/amethystviolist
Summary: “Where are you?” Arthur asked, and Merlin could hear the ringing of the office phone somewhere in the background. “I thought you were going to drop by at lunch.”“Something came up,” Merlin said vaguely. “I don’t think I have time to explain.”He didn’t want to explain getting kidnapped and then fatally wounded. It seemed like a rather depressing conversation that he didn’t want to have invading his last moments.





	Phone Call

**Author's Note:**

> In case you missed the tags, there's brief mention of blood and injury! I don't consider it enough for "Graphic Depictions of Violence", but if you're especially sensitive to mentions of blood and embedded knives, then this isn't for you.
> 
> Otherwise, please enjoy. And by enjoy I mean despair.

Merlin’s hands were shaking as he numbly clutched the phone to his ear, struggling to grip the plastic made slippery by his own blood. A strange peace washed over him as the phone rang, the mechanical tone impersonal and detached, before it was replaced with the anxiety of whether or not the call would be answered. Merlin fought his own lungs, inhaling and exhaling with a rattling, exhausting effort as he waited.

_Please pick up._

_Don’t pick up._

_Please pick up._

_Don’t pick up._

The line clicked as someone answered, regardless of Merlin’s warring interests, and a familiar voice drawled, “You know, we can’t all sit around a dusty herbalist’s shop and call our husbands whenever we feel like it. I hope this is important.”

“Hello to you too, you prat,” Merlin managed, and attempted a shaky laugh.

“Where are you?” Arthur asked, and Merlin could hear the ringing of the office phone somewhere in the background. “I thought you were going to drop by at lunch.”

“Something came up,” Merlin said vaguely. “I don’t think I have time to explain.”

He didn’t want to explain getting kidnapped and then fatally wounded. It seemed like a rather depressing conversation that he didn’t want to have invading his last moments.

“You can’t think of an excuse as to why you forgot, you mean,” Arthur teased him. “Honestly, _Mer_ lin, I’m surprised you haven’t lost track of your own head yet.”

“Just as long as I can keep track of yours,” Merlin shot back, but then involuntarily let out a tiny grunt of pain as his stomach muscles jerked around the blade embedded there.

“Hey, are you okay?” Arthur asked, dropping all pretense of teasing. “What was that?”

“Ah, I, er, just ran into something,” Merlin replied, which was technically true. That something was a knife, rather than a table leg, but Arthur didn’t need to know that.

“Of course you did,” Arthur snorted, sounding completely unconcerned once more. “I can’t imagine what it’s going to be like when you’re eighty-something years old and your sense of balance will be even worse.”

“Maybe my balance will get better with age, you don’t know!” Merlin rallied, a smile creeping onto his face at the thought of he and Arthur bickering side by side in a nursing home somewhere.

“Whatever you say, _Mer_ lin,” Arthur said condescendingly. There was a slight lull, before Merlin could gather the strength to speak, careful to keep his tone even and light.

“So, tell me about your day?” he asked, struggling to expand his chest again without gasping. Arthur barked out a short laugh, and papers rustled on the other end.

“It hasn’t exactly been riveting,” Arthur replied dryly. “Morgause is going to _kill_ me, honestly. She knows as well as I do that if we don’t compromise then no one gets contracts for the next year, but she just keeps insisting that I’m trying to sabotage her whole company or something. It’s getting ridiculous.”

Morgause _had_ been trying to kill Arthur, unknown to him. Unfortunately, Merlin, to his everlasting shame, hadn’t been able to gather enough evidence to get her arrested before she tried to hurt anyone. She had come after him- kidnapped him, threatened Arthur, then pulled out a gun.

And now she was dead. Ten feet away on the cold stone floor, her blonde hair stained red. Merlin hadn’t been able to look at her corpse for his last view of this world.

In the rather long pause, Merlin fought for air. His chest was making a gurgling sound, which was probably a bad sign.

“Merlin?” Arthur asked when the line was silent too long.

“Sorry,” Merlin managed, tears of pain and something like regret pricking his eyes. “I- I’m sorry.”

“Are you sure you’re alright? Where are you?” Arthur asked again.

“I’m… I’m just lying down for a bit,” Merlin said with a cough. Something dribbled onto his chin, and he wasn’t good enough at lying to himself to pretend that it wasn’t blood.

“You’re at home?” Arthur asked, sounding confused.

“Don’t worry about me,” Merlin insisted breathlessly, avoiding the question. “I just wanted to hear about how your day was… Since I missed you at lunch and all.”

“Oh.” Arthur sounded a little surprised, but Merlin got the distinct feeling that he was pleased about the unusual thoughtfulness. “Uh, thanks. I guess you’re not a complete dimwit after all.”

“I do try,” Merlin said, aware that the retort wasn’t nearly up to his usual standards. His vision was swimming slightly, the warehouse ceiling rocking back and forth even though Merlin lay perfectly still.

“You’ve gotten yourself sick, haven’t you,” Arthur replied at last, sounding fondly amused. “I should have known. I _told you_ that Gaius’s cold was still contagious.”

“Something like that,” Merlin agreed with a weak chuckle. “You’re a clever man, Arthur.”

“Wow, a compliment _and_ weak insults? Come on, Emrys, you know that you can just _ask_ for my delicious soup,” Arthur teased gently. A door opened and then closed somewhere in his office, but the background noise constantly increased.

“You just heat up canned soup,” Merlin pointed out, closing his eyes and smiling softly.

“I’ll have you know that I heat up soup extremely well,” Arthur announced with mocking pompousness. Sounds of traffic suddenly invaded the phone call, and Merlin frowned.

“Are you outside?” he asked uncertainly.

“I’m coming home to take care of my idiot of a husband who went and caught some nasty bug,” Arthur replied, and though the words were caustic, his tone was gentle. Loving, even.

Merlin’s chest ached, and he didn’t think it was just from fighting to breathe.

“No, I can’t pull you away from work!” Merlin half-protested, but he knew it was already a lost cause.

“ _Mer_ lin, it’s nearly two thirty. I think they can manage without me for another few hours, but apparently you cannot. Just… get into bed and I’ll see you when I get home, alright?” Arthur finished more gently.

“Don’t hang up!” Merlin cried desperately. The line was quiet, and Merlin’s heart pounded a few times as he wondered if it was too late already. He didn’t want to spend his last few minutes alone.

“Okay…?” Arthur said slowly, and Merlin sighed with relief. Then choked a little on the excess air.

“I wanted to- Arthur. Arthur Pendragon, I love you. You can be the biggest arse, but when you aren’t that, then you’re noble, and brave, and- and selfless-” Merlin coughed again, knowing his breathing was noticeably ragged at this point.

“Merlin?” Arthur asked, sounding worried. “How sick are you, exactly?”

“I love you so much,” Merlin chose to say instead. “More than I’ve ever loved anyone. You’ve always been there for me. You’re more than I ever could have asked for in this life.”

“You’re scaring me,” Arthur told him flatly, but Merlin knew that tone too well. That was the trying-to-be-emotionless tone that Merlin could see through every time, and he could hear the undercurrent of true fear there, just as Arthur had said.

“Please be happy,” Merlin managed as something like static started buzzing in his ears. “No matter what happens, Arthur, I want you to try to be happy.”

“Merlin, I’m almost home,” Arthur said, and from the puffs of air over the connection, Merlin realized that Arthur was running.

“Don’t worry about me,” Merlin repeated. He couldn’t feel his legs anymore. His stomach didn’t hurt, either.

“Look, I’m going to get you on some meds that _won’t_ get you talking crazy, and you’re going to be fine. Okay?” Arthur insisted.

“Tell me you love me,” Merlin gasped. He opened his eyes again, but found he couldn’t see for all the dark spots clouding his vision.

“...I love you,” Arthur said gruffly. There was the sound of a door again, and Merlin knew he’d reached the apartment complex. “I’ll be up in a minute, alright?”

“I’m not at home,” Merlin revealed, with regret plain in his tone. “I… I had to protect you.”

Over the phone, Arthur was breathing more heavily. “Merlin…?”

“I’d do anything to protect you. You know that, right?” Merlin asked. The phone was slipping, but he couldn’t seem to hold onto it any longer. It wouldn’t matter. He got to hear Arthur’s voice. Everything would be okay if he could hear Arthur’s voice.

“Where. Are. You.” Arthur growled, and Merlin managed to smile a little. He felt bad for scaring Arthur so much. This was meant to be an ordinary phone call, just to hear Arthur’s voice one last time. But Merlin couldn’t resist trying to fit a lifetime of love into his last few moments.

“I love you,” Merlin got out. “Tell… the others, too. But you. So… so special.” Merlin hacked up another good bit of blood, but he couldn’t really feel it anymore. The odd sense of peace was back, lulling him to the darkness like an old friend’s embrace.

“Merlin! Tell me what’s going on! Where are you? ...Merlin! Dammit, Merlin, what’s happened?” Arthur cried, his voice rising from nervous to frantic.

“Arthur,” Merlin managed, and hoped the single word had every bit of emotion he could possibly convey. Love, sadness, apology, tenderness… all of it. The phone dropped out of his blood-slick hand, landing on the concrete floor with a small clatter.

“ _Merlin?_ ” Arthur’s voice was distant and mechanical now, seemingly far away. Merlin smiled to himself, his mind going back to memories of the past five years in particular. What a life he’d been building. He wished he got to see more of it.

“ _Merlin? Dammit, Merlin, answer me!"_

“ _Where are you?!_ _Merlin!"_

“ _Merlin!"_

“ _Merlin!"_

Arthur’s increasingly panicked voice echoed throughout the warehouse.

But no one was left to hear him.

**Author's Note:**

> ...Aaaaand now we're all sad. Drop me a comment if you can, I'd love it!


End file.
